How to modify sleeping quarters for fulltime outdoor piggies over winter?

Tippyz

Tippyz

Junior Guinea Pig
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I'm from Australia and we got our 3 piggies and their home made double story enclosure with them which is what they were raised in, they have a closed off area that has an open door for night time sleeping.. its basically a wooden box that i guess the previous owner has just put hay in.. I'm currently using a wooly carseat cover and have made it into a a pouch with towling as flooring so I can easily wash every day.. I was putting a hot water bottle in with them and some hay on top of the pouch but I'm worried the hot water bottle might be too warm and it tends to lose its heat after so long obviously. it's coming up to a chilly australian winter and I'd love some suggestions on what other outdoor piggy owners have done or maybe suggestions on how i could modify their enclosure to be warmer.. i was thinking maybe foam or something to insulate a little?
 
Mine are outside piggies and during the cold winter months I stuffed as much hay as my hutch would hold in every night to keep them warm. I also have snugglesafes. I have snuggle sacks too which they love to snuggle down in. If you can't make them (I am useless with a sewing machine) or can't afford for someone else to make them for you old fleece hats will do just as well. I have other warm hideys too. I have an insulated cover for my hutch and a thermal waterproof cover over the top and when it got chilly at night I popped an old blanket over the top and the front to keep the frost out. They were OK in that down to around -2 or -3 but when the snow came and the temperature dropped to -10 I did bring them inside into the Conservatory for a week or so as this was the coolest room in the house (stays around 5 degrees in the winter) and then the temperature change wasn't too much for their little bodies.
 
I don't advise using hot water bottles ( or bottles filled with hot water ) as it's very difficult to get the temperature right ... and they don't stay warm enough for long enough . The snugglesafes Betsy has mentioned are a much better option .
 
Thanks a lot Betsy! I do use tarp and a blanket under the tarp to keep the frost out. That's great to learn about the sunnglesafe's, I'll be getting a couple of those and found some snuggle sacks on ebay for $4. lucky it doesn't snow here.. it does get down to about 4°C on a cold winters night, the pigs are used to winter and I don't think previous owner went to much of an extant, mainly just filled with hay I think. I'm just trying to make them as comfortable as i can! thanks for your help 😊
 
oh also the previous owners have put quite a large hole covered with mesh in the back wall of the part they sleep in, for airway I guess. does it matter if I cover this or put a cardboard box in with hay (that will cover it) because I'm thinking that its letting in a load of cold air.. or is this necessary for airway? I've never seen what a proper hutch looks like
 
okay great 😊 that's an impressive cage! with the sunnglesafe's would x2 do for a 44cmx59cm box? and how I've made the pouch out of the car seat cover with hay behind it and on top so its something they can snug into is this okay? or would it be a bit cramped and I should just do hay? (3 pigs, they are boars but they did grow up together and there aren't any fights) I just like doing this because it keeps them out of the hay so they don't pooh and wee in it and I don't have to change it too often just wash the flooring daily and keeps the smell to a minimum
 
Thanks! I have 4 snugglesafes for my 5 piggies but could do with another so that they have one each. I usually put 2 upstairs and 2 downstairs. The need loads of hay in the winter to snuggle up in and keep warm. Its lovely seeing piggies enjoying themselves by running in and out of the hay. Mine love making hay tunnels and hiding in them too. Here is a hay tunnel that Betsy made.
Where is Betsy 1.webpWhere is Betsy 2.webp

I usually put in around at least a a foot and a half of hay top and bottom and then more as they tread it down. They can never have enough hay! They always have clean hay in the hay bales that you can see on the doors of the hutch but they choose to eat the stuff they have wee'd, pooped and trampled on for some reason:vom:Maybe it tastes better?:vom:
 
haha cute photo! I put hay in the second story but not enough by the looks! how often do you change the hay? understandable they cant be bothered with the hay that you've put in their feeders, its everywhere 😊 i change the spot of the cage every day for fresh grass underneath, ive orderd two snuggles safes so I'll use them during the day in the big part of their cage and bedding at night. thanks alot for your help with everything!
 
I give the hutch a thorough clean once a week and top up the hay as necessary. When I say thorough, I mean thorough! All hay and newspaper lining out, sweep out with a dustpan and brush, spray everywhere with F10 (floors, walls, ceiling, front, back and sides of ramp) wait for everything to dry, line with clean newspaper and put mountains of hay on top. Oh and I forgot to mention I have a hay tray in the hutch too which gets cleaned 2-3 times a week. I have been known to get the old hoover on it too! When I go away for on holiday, I pop aubiose on top of the newspaper under the hay too as this is absorbent and then my piggy sitters don't need to worry about cleaning out the hutch. Hope this helps!
 
Oh awesome I was wanting to line with newspaper but was worried they'd eat it, and good to know about the disinfectant! thank you so much for taking the time to explain everything, appreciate it!
 
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